Marshall School Of Business

The Marshall School of Business, one of the 17 schools that make up the University of Southern California, is a private research university founded in 1920. In Southern California, it is the oldest accredited business school.

Undergraduates, graduates, and postgraduates can apply to the Marshall School of Business. Undergraduate degrees in business administration, accounting, and international business are available.

Top Employers:

• Apple
• Amazon
• Cisco Systems
• Google
• Deloitte
• Meta
• NBC Universal
• Salesforce

Application Essay Questions:

The candidates must answer one short question and two more extended essay questions as part of the application.

Short answer essay question

What will be your specific, short-term career objective after earning your MBA? In your response, Please be as specific as possible about the position, job duties, and industry. (100 maximum words)

TIP: Marshall wants to know that you have a goal in mind and are not simply applying to business school with the idea that you will figure everything out once you are enrolled in the program. Of course, many MBA candidates have a long-term career plan, but Marshall wants you to show that you have given the necessary intermediate steps some severe thought. Therefore, your objective in this brief essay is to show that you have a plan in place rather than just having vague aspirations. The institution’s other primary concern is whether or not your enrollment in the school’s MBA program will help you achieve your stated objective and whether you have conducted the necessary research to identify and confirm it for yourself. Therefore, your response must be concise (no more than 100 words) and easy to understand. Keep your language specific.

First essay question

Draft a letter saying “Dear Admissions Committee.” (600 words maximum)

This letter serves as your statement, letting the admissions committee know more about you as a candidate for Marshall than is apparent in your application. On purpose, this essay is left open-ended. You have the right to express yourself however you want. We aim to thoroughly understand each applicant in ways not revealed by their test results, grades, or resumes.

TIP:  This is primarily a request for a personal statement, as the admissions committee acknowledges in the prompt. A personal statement typically addresses the following topics: 

(a) why the candidate feels they need an MBA. 

(b) why the MBA is necessary now; and 

(c) why they wish to attend the particular school in question.

It is important to note that the admissions committee acknowledges that it already knows much about you from the other application components. To choose which parts of your profile best complement this information and its overall picture, you should first consider what the elements say about you as a person and a candidate. This does not necessarily imply that you cannot discuss any topics covered elsewhere in your application; instead, it simply means that you should avoid repeating anything in your essay unless necessary. Pay attention to completing the information the school already has. Remember that this is an excellent chance for you to present yourself as a dynamic, well-rounded person who would be an excellent addition to the Marshall community. So try to instil your essay with truthfulness and personality in addition to information, despite the somewhat stuffy introduction to the school provides, “Dear Admissions Committee.”

Optional essay

Please give the admissions committee any additional information you would like them to consider. (250 words maximum)

TIP: Generally speaking, candidates should use a school’s optional essay to clarify murky or troubling aspects of their candidacy, which this prompt allows. So, take advantage of this chance to answer any inquiries the admissions committee may have about your profile, such as a subpar grade or overall GPA, a low GMAT or GRE score, or a gap in your employment history.

Marshall makes it clear that you are free to discuss any additional details about your application that you believe to be crucial or especially compelling. For example, provide information you believe the admissions committee needs to be aware of to conduct a thorough and accurate evaluation of you (and that might not have been appropriate for your required essay). 

(Necessary for all applicants seeking a test waiver) – Essay for Test Waiver Please provide a brief justification for your claim that you are eligible for a test waiver. (200 words maximum)

TIP: You must present a compelling, convincing case for why you shouldn’t be required to take one of the exams prospective MBA students typically pass to be granted a test waiver. Marshall conducts These exams, like all business schools, to evaluate applicants’ verbal and quantitative skills (as well as their command of the English language) and their level of preparedness for the demands of the MBA curriculum. The school does not want to admit and enrol students who will ultimately find it difficult to keep up in such a rigorous academic program; this would not be good for the student or their classmates. Therefore, you must demonstrate to the admissions committee that you already possess the necessary skills.

Upcoming deadlines

The application deadline for the Full-Time MBA Class of 2025 is as follows: 

• Round 1: October 15th, 2022 (Decision December 31st, 2022)
• Round 2: January 5th, 2023 (Decision March 31st, 2023)
• Round 3: March 1st, 2023 (Decision May 15th, 2023)
• Round 4: April 15th, 2023( Decision June 15th, 2023)
• Round 5: Applications submitted after the last date will be considered if seats are available.

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